ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — Senator Chuck Schumer was in Rochester on Monday after he announced that the Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse region won a Tech Hub designation.

The region won the designation after its creation in the CHIPS & Science Act. Due to the designation, Schumer’s proposal “NY SMART I-Corrdiro” will bring the assets from the region to help the three cities become a manufacturing hub for semiconductors.

The Buffalo-Rochester-Syracuse region was one of 31 regions selected for the designation after beating out hundreds of other applicants. The region will now be able to compete for federal funding to turn Upstate NY into a global hub for semiconductor development.

“What the feds are saying is the Genesee Valley has the potential to become the next Silicon Valley,” said Schumer.

Senator Schumer says that Micron is the one American company that makes memory chips, which gives the company the potential to be the center of the local semiconductor superhighway.

“I pulled out all the stops to land this Tech Hub Designation for my great home state — making the case that bringing together these three cities and giving them the resources to combine forces would create an unstoppable engine that will rev the region’s industries to life and make Upstate NY a global center for semiconductors,” said Senator Schumer.

“The level of private sector investment in this industry that is already underway, combined with the public-sector investments that this designation is sure to generate, will be a game changer for the people of Rochester and our neighbors to the east and west,” said Mayor Evans. “Senator Schumer is moving us closer to our vision of creating a safe, equitable, and prosperous Rochester by delivering hope and creating opportunity for everyone.”

In addition, Micron is working to invest $100 billion into the construction of a memory fab, which is expected to create 50,000 jobs. Edwards Vacuum also invested $300 million to build a dry pump manufacturing facility.

Full Press Conference

You can watch the full press conference in the video player above.